


Brush, brush, brush!

by Ether Vibes (Vriskaserbet)



Category: Smile For Me (Video Game)
Genre: Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Fluff, Pre-Flower Kid, Some Humor
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-01
Updated: 2020-07-01
Packaged: 2021-03-05 02:28:05
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,148
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25016986
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Vriskaserbet/pseuds/Ether%20Vibes
Summary: In the comforting space within her idealistic dreams and fantasies, Tiff Webber should've been a household name by now. A famous singer with at least five or six platinum records under her belt who toured the world to packed stadiums worldwide.Not singing a song about brushing teeth in the middle of the most depressed crowd she's ever looked at, all the while she's currently middle aged and her biggest crowd was a rich kids birthday a year or so back. Doesn't take long for her to get depressed as well.
Comments: 4
Kudos: 14





	Brush, brush, brush!

**Author's Note:**

> Written for the "Turning Over A New Leaf" zine, which you can find here! https://lbproductions.itch.io/toanl

“The teeth on the bus go brush, brush, brush! Brush, brush, brush! Brush, brush, brush!” The vocals were backed by a quiet, simplistic melody coming from the nearby jukebox. Despite it’s childish tune, Tiff carried her voice strongly throughout the near empty lounge anyways. The wide smile on her face met the detailed glitter-filled instructions Dr. Habit had given her months ago. Despite her exterior, Tiff had never felt so… miserable.

She guessed it stemmed from the general vibe from the crowd. While Habit pushed the lounge hard in his various PSA’s, it had never been quite the “hip” spot. Only a few of the Habiticans would ever come by, usually in the hopes to drown their sorrows in the free drinks. Currently, she guessed that even alcohol wasn’t enough for tonight.

At the bar counter, Randy sat to the far left. Typically, he’d make odd conversation with those around him or demand a “pickle cocktail” from Jimothan, but he had been silent for most of the night. It wasn’t rare to see him with a frown on his face, though the dejected expression he held made her internally concerned. Meanwhile, Jimothan had been wiping down the same clean glass for the past ten minutes with an obvious frown on his face.

Worse yet, even Jerafina wasn’t immune to the low mood. She had barely touched her martini, instead swirling it around and letting out low sighs every few minutes. Tiff nearly missed her cue for the finale, her gaze focused on Jerafina’s downcast eyes.

“The unhappy people lose their teeth! Lose their teeth, lose their teeth! And the unhappy people lose their teeth alllll throughout the town…” the accompanying music faded away and left her in sudden, overwhelming silence. She lingered on stage with slight hesitation, her fingers hovering over the microphone stand. Her saccharine smile slowly dropped as she looked around the sorry room around her.

“...I’ll be going on my break now. I’ll be performing again in thirty minutes.” she announced flatly. She hopped off her stage, each step making the pit in her stomach stronger. She walked towards the bar counter and took a middle seat. She rested her elbows on the counter and placed her face into the palms of her hands.

“Jim, the usual strawberry cocktail. Please. It’s been a long one today.”

“Uh—” he blinked, her voice suddenly shaking him out of his thoughts. “No problem.” he ducked down to grab the needed ingredients. After coming back up and beginning to put her drink together, he cleared his throat. She turned her head slightly, letting him know her obscured eyes were on his nervous ones.

“Uh… you feeling alright?”

She shrugged her shoulders. “Not really.”

“Do you wanna talk about it… Gal-pal?” Jimothan gave a pained grimace “Sorry. I’m trying.”

Despite everything, she gave a slight chuckle. “It’s alright.” 

“It’s just…” a low sigh escaped from her. “...Sometimes, I feel like all my problems and stress… they’re like… a swarm of bees. And they buzz in my head all day. I can’t stop the bees, so I try to keep myself busy. I distract myself as long as I can, but at the end of the day, I’m still hearing buzzing. And I’m getting tired of doing anything. Because I’m always going to hear buzzing.”

Jimothan nodded. “That sounds rough.”

Randy gave a bitter laugh. “You and I are united in this incessant misery. Do tell, what is filling your soul with such despair?”

“I’m… not happy with my performances here,” Tiff admitted. “It just feels like a waste of time. Singing the same teeth songs every night in this unhappy little place…” she shook her head. “I don’t know why I even try anymore. I wanted to be touring by now. Releasing my sixth album by now…. Not doing these kinds of jobs at my age.”

“H-Hey, I think your singing is pretty!” From the hole in the wall, Trevor’s squeaky voice broke through. He managed to get one arm and most of his head through the wall, giving a slight wave to Tiff as she turned to face him.

“HEY! DON’T EAVESDROP! You ain’t coming back in! Don’t make me get the broom again!” Jimothan yelled.

“I’m allowed to listen!!! My werewolf hearing is super sensitive anyways!!” Trevor yelled back. 

“Well… thank you, Trevor. That’s nice of you to say that.” he gave a slight shrug in response.

“It’s nothing, really! Of course, it makes me suspect you’re some kinda siren… but at least you’re a nice siren! 

Despite everything, Tiff felt a small laugh escape her. “A siren? That’s funny, I used to dream of being a mermaid growing up. I had a whole song about it and everything…”

“Really?” Trevor's eyes lit up. “Do you still remember it? I’d love to hear siren music! I could use it for my research!” 

“Well, it’s a bit embarrassing…” Tiff admitted, shaking her hand to dismiss the idea. 

“Ohhhh, really?” Jerafina spoke up. “Now youuuuu made me want to hear it moooore.”

“I—” she paused at the slight grin appearing on Jerafina’s weary face.

“Oho! I must admit, you’ve piqued my interest as well. Indeed, you should sing it!” Randy added. 

A nervous giggle escaped from Tiff, her cheeks flushing slightly.“Well…!! I’m not allowed to play my own music… Dr. Habit’s orders.”

Trevor was quick to interject. “Well, hang on! You’re not on the clock! You’re on break! Can’t you sing whatever you want? Especially epic siren music!” 

“...You know…” Tiff spoke up after a long moment of thoughtful silence. “I suppose you do have a point.”

“Siiing it! Siiing it!! Siiing it!!!” Jerafina slammed her hands on her table. Quickly, Randy and Trevor both joined in. Tiff gave a desperate glance to Jimothan, who simply gave her a cheeky grin.

“Hey, you’re the singer. Shouldn’t you take requests?” he laughed as Tiff sighed dramatically at his words.

“Okay! Okay! Fine, I’ll sing.” They cheered and clapped as she got off her chair, continuing on as she walked onto the stage. As she reached for the microphone, adjusting it slightly, they finally silenced. Tiff parted her lips, a slow breath escaping her. 

“This song…” her eyes gazed across the room. There was still an air of sorrow in the air, but their faces were lighter, their eyes focused entirely on her. Slowly, a true smile appeared on her face. 

“This song is called… Oceanic Glow.” 

The lyrics, despite their age, felt at home on her lips. The flowing words escaped effortlessly from her mouth, her voice never cracking nor wavering. She shut her eyes tight and returned to that peaceful state of youth, in which her dreams were still possible, the future still seemed so bright and the crashing tides were her home.

The song ended yet her happiness seemed to linger as she basked in the loud cheers.

**Author's Note:**

> :-) The zine is fantastic! So many talented artists and writers worked so hard on it, so please check it out! It's a free download. I'm a bit late in posting my piece, but I hope you enjoyed this as well! 
> 
> Follow my art/writing blog @ethervibes. My personal blog is @transfemhabit if you want to see me talk about Smile For Me or reblog general content for it! Leave a kudos/bookmark/comment if you liked this fic, it helps me write more! Have a great day/night and stay healthy. :-)


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